The choice of underlayment for your vinyl plank flooring ultimately depends on your specific needs and the conditions of your space. However, experts often recommend foam or felt underlayment for their sound reduction, protection from moisture, and insulation properties.
The most used types of underlayment for vinyl are cork, foam, felt, rubber, plywood, and OSB.
Vinyl and PVC do not need moisture protection. And you shouldn't use padding to even out your subfloor as that will allow the floor seams to move more, you should level mechanically or with a compound.
Vinyl flooring can go over a plywood subfloor without a vinyl flooring underlayment as long as the substrate is sturdy, smooth, and flat. If your plywood subfloor is in poor condition, you may need a thin plywood underlayment to smooth the surface out.
Rubber - The Most Durable Backing for Vinyl Flooring
The backing is what comes into contact with your subfloor, and it can give your vinyl flooring different properties, like increased cushion or shock absorption.
The best underlayment for vinyl flooring varies; foam offers extra cushioning, felt provides sound control and insulation, and cork is great for noise reduction, but not a moisture barrier.
Most vinyl floors don't need an underlay. If the surface you're laying on is level and smooth, a well-cushioned vinyl floor should be fine on its own. Our Luxury Vinyl Click flooring is laid using the same as technique as laminate options in that it's loose laid creating a "floating floor".
6mm plywood is the most common underlying product for vinyl sheet flooring. Compared to the particle board, it has lots of benefits. For instance, besides being highly durable, plywood is water-resistant. The plywood used underneath the vinyl sheet flooring should have a smooth, sanded surface on the upper side.
Your subfloor should be clean, rigid, level and free of cracks. Remove any carpeting or old vinyl flooring and temporarily remove the baseboard. If you are installing vinyl planks in a bathroom, you may need to temporarily remove the toilet, or you can install around it.
DuraVinyl 435, Barricade Vinyl, was developed to adhere to the rough painted or unpainted plywood barricades used throughout New York. DuraVinyl 435 is a traditional 3.5mil white vinyl with a 2mil coating of soft, high tack adhesive that tacks up to 9lbs/ square inch over 24 hours.
If your planks already have a pad-attached underlayment, you most likely won't need an underlayment. However, if your flooring manufacturers installation instructions allow for an extra underlayment, adding an extra underlayment will provide improved sound reduction, insulation, and moisture protection.
Traffic flow
The path most traveled in a room also dictates a sensible direction for your vinyl planks. Laying the planks parallel to the main traffic flow does a couple of things. First, it creates a visual elongation of the space, making the journey through the room feel more direct and spacious.
Subfloor: Typically made from sturdy materials like plywood, OSB, or concrete, designed to provide long-term durability and support. Underlayment: Made from softer, more flexible materials like foam, cork, or specialized plywood, designed to address specific performance needs.
When moisture penetrates your flooring, it can cause mold, mildew, and the potential for water damage. A moisture barrier helps control the water vapor's movement to help protect your floors. Therefore, if you're installing floors in an area that sees moisture, even a little, a vapor barrier is needed.
Vinyl flooring underlayments typically range from 1mm to 6mm in thickness. Thicker options provide better soundproofing and cushioning but may not be necessary for smooth subfloors.
Get some 1/8" Hardboard, Lauan or birch plywood (one side smooth) and lay it down without gaps over the sub floor. At this thickness, you can staple it down. smooth any edges/fill any gaps. Lay your vinyl.
Underlayment is needed if you're going to install vinyl plank flooring over tile, vinyl flooring, and even hardwood. As mentioned, with the plywood floor, there's no need to worry about a moisture barrier; the underlayment should provide cushioning and sound-deadening benefits.
Make sure your subfloor is dry, smooth, structurally sound, and free from debris (that means scraping off the old glue if you've ripped out old vinyl or laminate). Move your roll of vinyl into the room where it's being fitted at least 24-48 hours beforehand to allow it to acclimatise to room temperature.
Generally speaking, the design of vinyl flooring prevents any need for underlay. This is because vinyl flooring comes with a base layer that already acts as an underlay, removing the need for any additional flooring aids. By design, vinyl flooring is exceptionally stable.
Use the proper leveling compounds to provide a flat surface – subfloors should be 3/16” in 10' or 1/8”: in 6' – the use of a 6' level can help to determine the flatness of the subfloor. square footage – for areas less than 2500 sq. ft – minimum expansion space is ¼” areas larger than 2500 sq.
Glue with PL premium to joists & screw the ply into the joists. 1/2 & 3/8 ply is not designed for subfloor use.
Rigid Vinyl Plank Flooring
SPC Floors: These rigid floors often work best with softer underlayments made of foam, felt, or cork. These materials provide cushioning and help absorb sound, enhancing the floor's performance.
Foam: Being one of the least expensive underlayments you can buy, foam fits as the perfect choice to be put under your vinyl floor, especially if your subfloor is made of plywood. However, make sure that you have no moisture issues as foam and water aren't a good combination when it comes to flooring.
If your sub floor is uneven we recommend you use a good-quality latex self-levelling compound, alternatively smaller uneven spots of more than 3mm can be filled with a rapid-drying deep-fill compound. For all subfloors, we recommend a final skim of Ardex Feather Finish to ensure the smoothest possible finish.